WEST BRANCH---For most of the 2012 baseball season, the Escanaba Eskymos rode a rollar coaster. Nice games against Mount Pleasant and Saginaw Heritage. Not-so-nice games against Marinette and Kingsford. But when it came down to it last Monday in the district tournament, none of that mattered as the Eskymos won the title in the Soo.

Now, it's time to go downstate and play again against the big boys. And the Eskymos are ready, riding the momentum from Monday's district championship.

Dave Falish is on third base in a baserunning drill Friday in West Branch.

The Eskymos traveled downstate by charter bus on Friday, and held a two-hour practice at West Branch Little League's "Field Of Dreams" facility.

Escanaba opens the MHSAA Division Two regional tournament on Saturday against Remus Chippewa Hills at West Branch Ogemaw Heights High School. The Warriors come into Saturday's game with a 31-6 record, which is better than Escanaba's 21-13 mark.

But that doesn't concern Eskymo Head Coach Kirk Schwalbach, who has kept a consistent attitude on "records" and "statistics" all season long.

"Our philosophy has been all year that we basically worry about the baseball," the first-year coach said. "Things that we can control. We'll play whoever we have to play. It's up to us throwing the ball, catching, and hitting it. That's what matters."

The boys are excited about their district title, and the opportunity to keep playing.

"I went down there (to West Branch) as a freshman, and I'm excited to see what we can do this year," Eskymo senior pitcher Alex DeHaan said. "We've just got to come together as a team as we did in the districts. Hopefully, we can go to Mount Pleasant (for the state quarterfinals). I want to play at Central (Michigan University)!"

Cam Beversluis throws from left in the infield-outfield drill Friday night.

"I'm really excited," Eskymo senior first baseman Ian DeMarse said. "I know our team has done really well this week in practice. I'm just ready to bring home a regional title."

West Branch Ogemaw Heights will face Whitehall in the first semifinal on Saturday. Schwalbach says he's not even looking up statistics or other information on those two teams. In fact, he said that he will be busy getting his team ready for the game against the Warriors and won't spend a lot of time watching the Falcons-Vikings game.

"We have to play good baseball," Schwalbach said. "We can't give them four or five outs (in an inning) and we have to execute. If we need a bunt to move a guy over, we have to execute.

"Timely hitting. And we can't let one mistake turn into a big inning for the other team," he continued. "If our pitching holds up like it has all year, I think we will be right there."

DeHaan agreed with his coach's assessment.

"We have to minimize all of our errors," he said. "That's been our killer."

DeMarse says that his team has to do all of the little things right this weekend.

Eskymo Senior first baseman Ian DeMarse

"We've got to hit the ball well, our pitching's got to be ready for whatever comes at us, we've got to field the ball well, and we've got to get down our bunts," he summarized.

WCHT-AM (600) is traveling with the team downstate. The Eskym0-Warrior game will be broadcast live back to the U.P. starting at 12:30 Saturday afternoon.